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4302. Untangling the Terror Web: Al-Qaeda is Not the Only Element
- Author:
- Matthew Levitt
- Publication Date:
- 10-2002
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
- Abstract:
- On Thursday, October 24, the Federal Bureau of Investigation issued a new terrorist threat alert (this time warning of attacks on transportation systems), highlighting once more why attention has been focused on al-Qaeda and its affiliated groups since September 11, 2001. A year on, however, other Middle Eastern terrorist groups and state sponsors of terrorism still receive inconsistent attention despite a sharp rise in their activity. In fact, militant Islamist groups from al-Qaeda to Hamas interact and support one another in an international matrix of logistical, financial, and sometimes operational terrorist activity. Inattention to any one part of the web of militant Islamist terror undermines the effectiveness of measures taken against other parts of that web.
- Topic:
- Security, Religion, and Terrorism
- Political Geography:
- Afghanistan, America, Middle East, and Arab Countries
4303. Behind the French Tanker Bombing: Yemen's Ongoing Problems with Islamist Terrorism
- Author:
- Jonathan Schanzer
- Publication Date:
- 10-2002
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
- Abstract:
- Since September 2001, Yemen has worked hard to shed its image as a hotbed of Islamist terrorism. That image, however, was reinforced when London's al-Sharq al-Awsat Arabic daily reported that the Islamic Army of Aden (IAA, or Aden-Abyan Islamic Army), an al-Qaeda affiliate, claimed responsibility for an explosion that crippled a French tanker on October 6 in the Yemeni harbor of Mina' al-Dabba. Moreover, a recent letter allegedly written by Osama bin Laden praises the "bold heroic jihad operations . . . against the crusader's oil tanker." The attack, which killed one crewman, underscores Yemen's importance as an area of concern in the U.S. government's "war on terror."
- Topic:
- Security, Religion, Terrorism, and War
- Political Geography:
- United States, Middle East, London, and Arab Countries
4304. Gamal Mubarak: Successor Story in Egypt?
- Author:
- Jonathan Schanzer
- Publication Date:
- 10-2002
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
- Abstract:
- British foreign minister Jack Straw met for an hour last week with Gamal Mubarak, the youngest son of Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak. According to a British official cited in al-Qanat, an Arabic online daily, Straw met Gamal because he "is a very important person who certainly enjoys great influence." The meeting was significant because it took place less than a month after President Mubarak appointed Gamal to a high-level post in the National Democratic Party (NDP), Egypt's governing political institution. Despite repeated, emphatic, and official assertions to the contrary, all indications point to Gamal being groomed to succeed his father.
- Topic:
- Security and Religion
- Political Geography:
- Middle East, Arab Countries, and Egypt
4305. Special Policy Forum Report: The Old Middle East's Triumph: Roots of Current Crises
- Author:
- Barry Rubin
- Publication Date:
- 10-2002
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
- Abstract:
- This question is usually answered in one of two ways. The "just around the corner" view, often favored by Western government officials and the media, argues that the region's conflicts and lack of significant progress could be rectified quickly if only the proper policies and detailed solutions were proposed. In contrast, the "victim" view, often favored in academia and in the Arab world, argues that the area's problems result primarily from external aggression and oppression. The irony is that those styling themselves progressive and pro-Arab in the West actually do great damage to the lives of Arabs in the Middle East, in part by embracing reactionary dictatorships.
- Topic:
- Security, Human Rights, and Religion
- Political Geography:
- United States, Iraq, Middle East, and Arab Countries
4306. Special Report: The Future of Iraq Policy
- Author:
- Zalmay Khalilzad
- Publication Date:
- 10-2002
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
- Abstract:
- I want to give you the administration's perspective on where we are and what our vision is for Iraq. As far as the current situation is concerned, we are of the view that Saddam Husayn's regime is determined to retain, expand, and again use weapons of mass destruction (WMD), and that the regime is ready to employ such weapons not only at home, but also abroad. The administration is now determined to disarm Iraq one way or another. No decision for use of force has been made, and we have no desire for war with Iraq. War is not inevitable, but action is. We are working with Congress to secure an effective resolution that allows the president to consider all possible options for dealing with the threat that Saddam Husayn poses. Similarly, we are working with the UN to secure an effective resolution that will end Saddam's defiance of Security Council resolutions and disarm the regime. We believe that Saddam is in material breach of his commitments to the UN. We believe that he threatens regional and global stability by supporting terrorism as well as by holding his country hostage and using its resources to build WMD and the missiles to deliver them. In order to avoid the use of force, Saddam must take the necessary actions – not words, but actions – to comply with all Security Council resolutions. Our position is that this threat will be dealt with one way or another, and in short order.
- Topic:
- Security, Religion, and United Nations
- Political Geography:
- Iraq, Middle East, and Arab Countries
4307. Algeria's GSPC and America's 'War on Terror'
- Author:
- Jonathan Schanzer
- Publication Date:
- 10-2002
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
- Abstract:
- Last week, intensified Islamist violence prompted Algerian president Abdelaziz Bouteflika to launch his military's largest counteroffensive against radical Islamic elements in five years. The target of this ongoing operation is the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat (GSPC), a breakaway faction of the Armed Islamic Group (GIA). GSPC deserves special attention in America's "war on terror" for its extensive ties to al-Qaeda and its devastating effect on Algeria.
- Topic:
- Security and Religion
- Political Geography:
- America, Middle East, Algeria, and Arab Countries
4308. Friendly Schengen Borderland Policy on the New Borders of an Enlarged EU and its Neighbours
- Author:
- Michael Emerson, Joanna Apap, Nicholas Whyte, Marius Vahl, Jakub Boratynski, and Grzegorz Gromadzki
- Publication Date:
- 11-2001
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Centre for European Policy Studies
- Abstract:
- One often hears the term 'Europe' being used interchangeably with 'European Union', giving the impression that those countries that are not destined to become members of the EU in the near future are not part of the same continent. Even after the forthcoming accession by 13 new countries, a significant part of Europe will remain outside the 'EU club'.
- Topic:
- Security and NATO
- Political Geography:
- Europe and Middle East
4309. Our Future Southeastern Turkish Frontiers
- Author:
- Nathalie Tocci
- Publication Date:
- 10-2001
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Centre for European Policy Studies
- Abstract:
- Today's southeast Turkey has historically been the homeland of a large number of diverse ethnic groups. Nowadays, in many town and villages of the region the largest ethnic group is Kurdish. Turkish officials under Turgut Özal in the 1990s for the first time admitted there may be around 10 million Kurds living in Turkey. Other estimates indicate a Kurdish population of around 15 million. Adding to this figure the additional 10 million or so Kurds living in Iran, Iraq, Syria and the former Soviet Union, the Kurdish people represent the largest ethnic group in the world without a state of their own.
- Topic:
- Security and NATO
- Political Geography:
- Iraq, Europe, Iran, Turkey, Middle East, and Syria
4310. U.S. Policy on Caspian Energy Development and Exports: Mini-Case and Paradigm
- Author:
- Graham T. Allison and Emily Van Buskirk
- Publication Date:
- 05-2001
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs, Harvard University
- Abstract:
- The date is July 1, 2001. Real world history and trends occurred as they did through March 19, 2001 — except for the hypothetical departures specified in the case below. Events after March 19 that are not specified in this case are assumed to be straight - line projections of events as they stand on March 19. Assume, for example, that sporadic violence continues in the Middle East at the current level of intensity; Britain and the U.S. are nearing the end of their review of UN sanctions against Iraq, and will soon make recommendations on refocusing the sanctions to make them “smarter”; as expected, Mohammad Khatami was reelected as President of Iran on June 8 with a mandate for continued reform; the price of oil is $25/barrel; events in Chechnya and Ukraine, and negotiations over Nagorno - Karabagh will continue as before.
- Topic:
- Conflict Resolution, Security, Democratization, and Energy Policy
- Political Geography:
- Britain, Russia, United States, Iraq, Ukraine, Middle East, Asia, and United Nations